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Eminent Domain

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This may seem controversial as some people may not be able to understand how public parks benefit anyone. Public parks may seem purely aesthetic and ornamental, adding no true value to society, therefore some would argue that the government has no justification for taking their property.
Eminent Domain was even used in World War II; “During World War II, the Lands Division oversaw the acquisition of more than 20 million acres of land. Property was transformed into airports and naval stations , war materials manufacturing and storage , proving grounds, and a number of other national defense installations.” This use of Eminent Domain justified as it is clear that the clause was put into practice for the sake of the American public. “Land …show more content…

“In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Land Acquisition Section attorneys secured space in New York for federal agencies whose offices were lost with the World Trade Towers. Today, Section projects include acquiring land along hundreds of miles of the United States-Mexico border to stem illegal drug trafficking and smuggling, allow for better inspection and customs facilities, and forestall …show more content…

In a podcast on his church and Eminent Domain, “a New York church's founder, Reverend Fred Jenkins, says the town of North Hempstead in 1998 exercised eminent domain and took the sanctuary as part of plans for a shopping and housing complex. Jenkins says that was a blow to his congregation.” Why does one church even matter? Are the shopping and housing complex not going to directly benefit the public as people shop or look for residences? Jenkins thinks otherwise, explaining, “We'd been feeding people that were hungry and paying for their lights when their lights was out and buying Pampers for their kids when their babies was in need. If you put an apartment building there, nobody in that apartment building would do the same thing for the people that the church will do.” The church not only represents an institution of faith and prayer; it represents a home that people can turn to in times of struggle. Which should be more supported: the close-knit feeling of community that the church provides, or the economic profit by way of a mall and apartment building? Can or should religious liberty ever be sacrificed for economic redevelopment? As Mr. JOHN MAUCK (Attorney to Jenkins) puts it, “The ability to have a place to assemble, to come together, is integral to almost every faith. It's fine to say you can believe what you want in your head, but free exercise of religion really involves meeting

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